Surviving
by StoriesFromEngland
Summary: RE-UPLOADED WITH SOME SLIGHT CHANGES. Two girls from England could not have been further from home or from their families. How will they survive the apocalypse? What secrets will be unveiled? Will they ever find people they can trust? Or will the new world be their biggest challenge yet?
1. Chapter 1

It had been over a month since the world had gone to shit. A few days was all it had taken for pandemonium to break out and for widespread panic to ensue. People were turning against each other, the dead were not staying dead for long and trying to eat people, people tried to find safe havens but was there anywhere left that was safe anymore and who could you trust? These are the questions that faced the remaining living population, not that there was many of them left.

'We're going to have to stop soon, it's getting dark and I don't know how much more my ankle can take' Jessica told her best friend as they traipsed through the wood together.

'I know just a little further and I'll find us a good tree to hold up in' Charlotte told her, keeping her bow ready.

To say these girls were out of their comfort zones and far from home, would be an understatement. What started as a simple trip to America turned into the most devastating thing that either of them had gone through.

'Char, I think I see something' Jess whispered

'Biter?'

'I don't know, it seems too still to be a biter'

Char stayed in the lead with her bow loaded and ready but still glanced back to make sure that nothing happened to her friend. Jess was the only person left in Char's life that she cared about and could look after. She had no idea what had happened to her family and knew that she never would. The two girls slowly made their way through the trees, trying their hardest not to make a sound but that was kind of impossible given that Jess has been walking on a sprained ankle for the past 3 days and it wasn't getting any better. They came to a clearing that was empty except for a body. A child's body.

'Is she dead?' Jess asked staying rooted to the spot but Char walked over and knelt down beside the child and tried to feel for a pulse.

'I think she's just unconscious. There's a pulse but it's weak'

'So what do we do?'

'Well we can't just leave her, she's only a little girl and you know what's out there'

'Is she bit?' Jess asked still wary of the situation that they were in. This could be a trap for all they knew. It's not as if they hadn't come across evil people before. Char checked all the places she could see thoroughly, wanting to be on the safe side

'No bites or scratches, not even a bit of blood.'

Jess let out a breath that she hadn't realised that she had been holding and finally approached the unconscious girl. 'Should we move her? Put her in the recovery position?' she questioned as she sat down against the trunk of a tree

'I don't know. I don't think you're meant to move someone that's unconscious, we don't know if she has a neck injury that we can't see and if we move her it could cause more damage than good. Listen you stay here with the girl, you have your knife and I won't be gone long'

'Where are you going?'

'To see if I can find anything to eat. I don't want to use our emergency food unless we have to, especially since we might have another mouth to feed.'

'Be safe' Jess told her best friend as she watched her walk away. She felt guilty everyday that Charlotte was the one to find their food and basically keep them alive. It's been like it since that start of this horrible nightmare. Char had been the one to find supplies, weapons. Jess knew that she did contribute and tried to pull her weight but she wasn't as mentally strong or resourceful as her friend. And ever since she had sprained her ankle, she felt like even more of a burden. It was only 20 minutes until Charlotte returned to the clearing holding berries and nuts.

'No game?' Jess asked slightly disappointed

'I didn't want to go far, you know just incase' she said inclining her head towards the little girl that still lay unconscious.

* * *

They both sat and ate in silence being sure to leave some food for their new companion for when or if she ever woke up. After eating it was obvious that Char was deep in thought. She was trying to think of a plan that would keep all three of them alive. She didn't have much medical knowledge but knew that if the girl didn't wake up soon then it didn't look good for her, who knows how long she's already been out here and she needed fluids. Char leant over and felt the girls forehead and she did appear to have s light temperature, Char didn't know what to do so reached into her backpack and pulled out a bottle of water and a flannel. She drenched the flannel in water before using it to cool down the girls face and satisfied with the girls temperature being bought down she sat back and began keeping watch for biters.

'Do you want the first watch or second?'Char asked Jess

'I'll take the fir...did you hear that?'

'What biters?' Char immediately stood up, bow in hand and began looking around

'I think she's waking up' Jess smiled moving closer to the girl, as Char bent back down she could see the girls eyelids slowly opening and her breathing return to a normal pace.

'Back up a bit, she's likely to be scared' Jess nodded and did as she was told 'Hey, little girl don't be scared, you're safe' Char whispered, hoping to ease the girls thoughts

The girl suddenly shot upright looking round her before noticing the two women.'Please don't hurt me' she mumbled

'We won't sweetheart, we promise.'

'Where am I?' she asked shying back towards a tree, Char placed her weapons down on the floor and Jess followed.

'We're in a forest, my names Charlotte and this is Jessica, we found you unconscious and stayed with you to make sure you were safe'

'You helped me?'

'Of course' Jess smiled 'Would you like a drink?' she offered her water bottle to the girl

'Thank you' she smiled before slowly taking a few sips of water.

The two women gave the girl some food as well but decided it was best not to ask her too many questions that night as she was still most likely in shock.

'Normally we sleep up in trees, it makes sure that the biters don't get us. So if you like we can get settled up there now before it gets too dark and then come up with a plan tomorrow morning. Does that sound good?'

'Yeah okay'

Charlotte checked the area for the tree that seemed the sturdiest and found one with a wide trunk and thick branches. Jess climbed up first before helping the girl up and finally after one last sweeping look around the clearing Char joined them.

'What if I fall out?'

'Here take this belt and fasten it around you and the branch and you'll be fine' Char smiled

'Thank you. By the way we call them walkers not biters'

'We?' Jess asked

'Me, my mom and the rest of the group' Jess and Char just looked at each other, and made a silent agreement to do whatever they had to, to get this girl back to her people.

'What's your name sweetheart?' Char asked

'Sophia' she told them before drifting off into a deep sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

The three girls survived the night with not so much as one biter even walking past their sleeping tree. To Jess and Sophia this seemed like a positive thing and were immediately cheerful but Char was different, she refused to let her guard down for one second. She had taken the second watch so was already awake and had finished her breakfast by the time the others awoke, she helped them both out of the tree before handing them both the last remaining food from last night.

'So Sophia' Char started and the little girl looked up to her smiling 'Can you remember what happened?'

'We were on the highway searching for supplies when a herd of walkers arrived so we hid as best we could. I was under a car. I thought they had all gone but when I went to get out one of them saw me so started towards me and then another so I headed for the woods. Rick came after me.'

'He your dad?' Jess asked

Sophia shook her head 'No he's the sheriff, my dad's dead' she stated matter of factly. 'Anyway so Rick found me and hid me whilst he drew the walkers away and told me to wait for him and that if he didn't return to head back towards the highway but I got lost on my way back and hadn't eaten or drank in two days so I guess that's why I passed out'

'Well you're lucky we found you when we did and don't worry, we'll get you back to your people okay'

'You promise?'

'Of course' Sophia got up to hug Char and then Jess before taking a seat back down. 'Do you remember which way you came from?'

Sophia began looking around at her surroundings 'No I'm sorry. Does that mean you won't be able to find my mom?'

'Not at all Sophia, it just means it may take a bit longer okay' Char reassured her before placing her backpack on her back and standing up 'Okay so this is the plan. We do still have a bit of food but it's all cereal and we need protein so I'm going to hunt for some rabbits or squirrel, there should be some around here but I want you two to go back in the tree okay'

'Charlotte no' Jess protested

'We can help' agreed Sophia

'No, now listen to me. I don't want to be gone too long cause I want us to have a full day of searching for your mom and everyone okay and no offence Jess but your foot is slowing us down. Do not get down if you see people or biters okay just stay hidden in the tree until I'm back'

'But what if you don't come back?' Sophia mumbled, the worry she held for Charlotte evident in her voice

'I will but just in case I'm a bit slow then I want you two to start searching for your mom in three hours okay. Jess you have some dried food so you'll both be fine and you have your knife'

Char then turned to Sophia 'Sophia, I want you to have this' Charlotte took the knife from the pouch on her belt and handed it to the girl 'You shouldn't need to use it but remember it's always better to be safe than sorry'

'Won't you need it though?' Sophia asked hesitantly

'Nah I prefer my bow and arrows and anyway everyone should have some sort of weapon'

Sophia threw her arms around the Charlotte 'Hurry back'

'I will sweetheart, now go on both of you get up in that tree'

* * *

At least an hour must have passed since Charlotte left the others in the tree but she knew that they would be safe with each other. In all honesty she was more worried about herself. She'd never been more than a mile away from Jess since the apocalypse started and was feeling more paranoid than usual. So far all she had managed to shoot was two squirrels but one of them was only a scrawny little thing so she knew that she had to find more before turning back. She decided that the best course of action was to head towards the stream, she's be able to fill up her water bottles and maybe catch a few fish if she was lucky.

Charlotte took off her boots and waded into the shallow stream, loading her bow and waiting patiently for the perfect opportunity to catch a few fish. A few fish started to swim to the right of her. She pulled the bow back, keeping her eye on her target before releasing the first arrow that pierced the fish in the eye

'Still a great shot' she mumbled to herself before repeating the action a second time and then a third, in total catching three fish which would be more than enough for their dinner tonight. She wrapped them up in a scarf and placed them carefully in her backpack. She was about to leave the stream and head back to Sophia and Jess when something caught her attention, out the corner of her eye she could see a deer grazing on the bank the other side of the stream.

She carefully placed an arrow in her bow and took a deep breath. Now that she concentrated on her target she realised that it must have only been a foal so internally debated about whether or not she could shoot it before realising that if she didn't, the biters would get to it anyway. She put all her focus into making this shot and as she released her arrow and it hit her target making the foal hit the ground she couldn't help but feel proud. Yes it would be difficult to carry back but it would be worth it. Once she cooked the meat it would keep for at least two days.

Charlotte was about to wade through the stream to retrieve her game but then noticed the rocks between her and the opposite side. She knew that if she took that route that she would be putting her life at risk and would most likely injure herself.

'Looks like it's the long way round' she sighed 'God I need to stop talking to myself, jeez there I go again...pull yourself together' she reminded herself as she stepped out of the stream and put her boots back on before finding a way around the stream and to the foal.

It seemed that luck was on her side for once as not ten minutes up the bank she found a small bridge that looked stable enough so began to walk across it, keeping an eye out for biters.

'Looks like someone found our dinner for us' she heard a man say as she approached the part of the bank where the foal would be.

'May as well take it, doesn't seem like anyone's around' another voice added. She watched them from behind a bush noting that there was 3 maybe 4 of them but it was hard to see from her position. As one of them pulled the arrow out she jumped up and yelled

'Back off that's mine!' Shit, idiot, why did you do that? she asked herself, not only have I put myself in danger of these men but also of biters that probably heard me.


	3. Chapter 3

'I said back off' Charlotte didn't know where this confidence had come from but all of a sudden she was walking towards the group of men with her bow and arrow pointed at them, all of them raised their weapons to her . 'I shot it, so it's mine'

'Screw that' one of them mouthed off pulling the arrow out and tossing it on the ground. Charlotte pulled the bow and arrow tighter

'Daryl leave it' one of the other men warned the redneck that had tried to take the foal 'I'm sorry ma'am, we didn't know that this belonged to you' Charlotte studied the four men in front of her, all of them had weapons and all of them could easily overpower her within seconds, she knew she wouldn't win in a fight.

'Are you alone?' asked a tall man with a shaved head

'Why do you want to know?' Char asked not lowering the bow

'It's just a young girl, shouldn't be out here by herself, it's not safe'

'I can look after myself just fine'

'We can see that' the one that warned Daryl said 'Guys lower your weapons' he told the others, you could see that they were reluctant to do so but eventually all of them did, even Daryl though he hesitated the longest. 'Do you think maybe you could lower yours too, we won't hurt you'

'I've heard that before and I'm sorry but I'm not willing to taking any chances'

'Rick leave it she's not worth it' Daryl moaned ready to turn back to camp

'Rick? Your names Rick?' Char questioned, the men all straightened up and Charlotte could see their grip tighten on their weapons

'Yes why?'

'You the sheriff?'

'I am'

'I found someone yesterday, a little girl, she said she had been chased by walkers, that's what she called them and that the sheriff Rick had gone after her and that she ended up lost in the woods'

'You found Sophia?' the bald one asked

'She's alive?' Rick breathed out a sigh of relief

'Yeah she's safe, we were gonna start looking for her group today when I got back from hunting but I guess I don't have to anymore.' Char smiled

'Can you take us to her?' Rick asked

'Of course'

'This is Shane by the way' Rick told her indicating to the bald man 'And this here is T-Dog'

'Nice to meet you' T-Dog smiled 'Want me to carry the foal?' he offered

'You don't have to'

'It's fine' he said before lifting it off the ground.

They walked in silence for a few miles before they all heard a sound coming from the trees ahead of them. Two biters came limping out, blood oozing around their mouths, clearly having just fed. Char pulled her arm back before releasing an arrow which shot the first one in the side of its head whilst at the same time another arrow zoomed past her head and hit the second right between the eyes. She looked around at Daryl, impressed at what she saw but that didn't change her opinion of him and the fact he seemed to be an arrogant prick. Daryl pushed past her and retrieved both of the arrows handing one back to Charlotte without even looking at her.

'How much further?' Shane asked after over an hour of walking

'Just through those trees' she pointed ahead

'Good'

'We never did ask your name' Rick commented

Char paused, not wanting to reveal too much of herself to these strangers but realised that whether they knew her name or not it wouldn't really make much difference 'Charlotte. My name's Charlotte but most people call me Char or Charlie'

'Here it is' she said stepping into the clearing 'Do you guys mind just waiting here?'

'Why can't we come all the way in?' Daryl snapped

'Rick?' Char asked, completely ignoring the redneck standing to her left.

'Of course, we'll wait here' Rick could feel the daggers come from Daryl's direction as the rest of them watched Charlotte walk over to the largest tree.

'Hey, I'm back' Char smiled looking up towards the branches. 'You two can come down now and Sophia I've got a surprise for you' Char placed her bow down and reached up to help Sophia get out of the tree

'RICK' she shouted and ran towards the men at the edge of the group and wrapped her arms around Rick hugging him 'You're all here. We were going to come and find you today. Is my mom okay?'

'Your moms fine' Rick smiled 'And we're glad you are too'

'We should probably get you back kid, everyone's been worried sick' Shane told her

'Okay' Sophia nodded 'Are you guys coming?' she turned asking Jessica and Charlotte who were already gathering their supplies.

'Sweetheart, I don't think we can. You're back with your people now, you're safe'

'Please. I don't want you two out here on your own, it's not safe and Jess is already hurt'

'We have a doctor. We have shelter. It's safe with us.' Rick explained

'I don't know' Char told them picking up her bow and putting one of Jess' arms around her shoulder to help support her

'Listen, it's not the world we used to know. It's dangerous and the people can be just as dangerous as the walkers but I think you already know this, at least come and get your friend checked over and stay the night then you can decide.'

'Okay we will' Jess agreed

'Jess!'

'What? I'm tired, I'm in pain and I'm sick of sleeping in trees. They seem like decent people, he's a sheriff for christ sake, we're going' Never in her life had Char seen Jess so determined and she wasn't about to leave her to go alone with these people so nodded her head and followed the group on the way back to their people.

After what felt like forever they came to a road where a car and bike were parked, it's alright for some Char thought.

'How are we going to do this?' T-Dog asked

'I can take one person on my bike with me' Daryl said, taking a seat on it

'Okay then Charlotte, would you mind going with Daryl and the rest of us will be able to fit in the car.' Rick asked. Charlotte sighed, not happy with one, being separated from Jess and two, being stuck with the redneck.

'Fine' she said walking over and taking a seat behind Daryl

'You might wanna hold on' Daryl told her as he started the engine, reluctantly she put her arms around him 'don't worry you weren't my first choice either' he told her before following the car back to wherever the hell they were staying.


End file.
